Fixing process

ABSTRACT

Particulate thermoplastic toner is fixed on a receptor surface by directly contacting the toner with a silicone elastomer surface while the toner is in a fused state responsive to the adhesive nature of the silicone elastomer and to the adhesive nature of the receptor to provide for the substantially complete retention of the toner on the receptor surface in a fixed condition. Preferably, the silicone elastomer is free of high surface energy fillers and, most preferably, is both free of high surface energy fillers and contains low surface energy fillers blended therein.

United States Patent Donnelly et al. Mar. 5, 1974 FIXING PROCESS3,345,942 10 1967 Meltz 29 132 ux [751 meme Charles vonnelly, SouthPaul, 3233??? 2/1323 233523;... "111: 33/135,?

James Sanders Hudson, 3,686,731 8/1972 Koori et al 29 132 Wis.

[73] Assignee: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul,Minn.

[22] Filed: Feb. 3, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 223,104

Related U.S. Application Data [62] Division of Ser. No. 867,176, Oct 17,1969, Pat. No.

[52] U.S. Cl. 29/132 [51] Int. Cl B2lb 31/08 [58] Field of Search29/132, 129.5

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,699,736 l/l955 Sticelber29/132 X Primary Examiner-Alfred R. Guest Attorney, Agent, orFirm-Alexander, Sell, Steldt &

DeLaHunt [57] ABSTRACT Particulate thermoplastic toner is fixed on areceptor surface by directly contacting the toner with a siliconeelastomer surface while the toner is in a fused state responsive to theadhesive nature of the silicone elastomer and to the adhesive nature ofthe receptor to provide for the substantially complete retention of thetoner on the receptor surface in a fixed condition. Preferably,the'silicone elastomer is free of high surface energy fillers and, mostpreferably, is both free of high surface energy fillers and contains lowsurface energy fillers blended therein.

3 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures FIXING PROCESS This is a divisionalapplication of Ser. No. 867,176, filed Oct. 17, 1969, which was issuedas Pat. No. 3,669,707 on June 13, 1972.

This invention relates to the field of duplication; more particularly,it relates to the fixing of particulate thermoplastic toner by directcontact with a silicone elastomer surface while the toner is in aparticular nonsolid or fused state.

The process of this invention is particularly useful in fixing ofresinous powder images produced by electrophotography onto receptorsheets such as sheets of paper. This powder image can be created througha variety of commercially known methods and in creation is not a concernof this invention. In general, the powders or toners for which thisinvention is directed are heat softenable, such as is provided by tonerswhich contain thermoplastic resins.

Previous fixing techniques for heat-softenable toner powders includeheating by radiant means such as by coiled wires and heat lamps,exemplary procedures being described in US. Pat. No. 3,432,639;3,448,970; 3,449,546 and 3,452,181. These methods have proveninefficient because of the necessity of heating the sheet, usuallypaper, to a temperature near charring for prolonged periods which insome cases causes the paper to burn. This has led to the development ofa fixing technique utilizing a heated surface which directly contactsthe heat softenable resinous toner. Generally this is accomplished bymeans of a pair of nip rolls, one a fuser roll having a peripheralsurface which has a low affinity for melted or softened toner, referredto in the art as abhesive properties, and a pressure or backup rollusually having a resilient cover. The fuser roll and/or the pressureroll may be heated internally to provide heat to soften thethermoplastic toner. A sheet, usually paper, bearing a thermoplasticpowder image is passed through the nip or contact area of the twoabovementioned rolls to fix the powder image'. Problems are encounteredwith the surface materials employed, the foremost being that as thetoner is softened to become sufficiently sticky to adhere to the sheetsome of the particles may stick to the surface of the fuser roll. Thiscauses a splitting of the image and results in a partial or ghost imageon the next sheet, producing what is commonly referred to in theduplicating art as an offset image.

The offset image problem has restricted the composition of the tonercontacting surface to certain materials having very high surface releaseor abhesive characteristics. This had led to complex fixing systems suchas those using nip rolls which may be coated with a tetrafluoroethyleneresin such as Teflon and a system for dispensing a silicone oil onto theheated roll. In this cumbersome arrangement, disclosed in US. Pat. No.3,29l,466; 3,331,592; 3,449,548; and 3,452,181, problems are encounteredin the liquid dispensing system when the liquid supply is exhausted oris dispensed unevenly over the surface of the heated roll, necessitatingmachine down time to fill the dispenser or to replace the applicatorbefore efficient operation can again be realized. Since the tonercontacting surface of this invention operates without the need for suchliquids, the attending problems are eliminated.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a process andarticle for rapidly fixing toner images without causing image splittingor offset images. 7

This and other objects of the invention are attained in one embodimentby means of a process for fixing thermoplastic toner comprisingcontacting a receptor surface bearing thermoplastic toner with asilicone elastomer surface for a time and at a temperature sufficient topermit said contacted toner to exist in a state wherein the cohesiveintegrity exceeds the force of adhesion exerted thereon by said siliconeelastomer, and wherein the forceof adhesion between said thermoplastictoner and said receptor surface exceeds the force of adhesion betweensaid thermoplastic toner and said silicone elastomer, and separatingsaid receptor surface and said silicone elastomer surface while saidthermoplastic toner is in said state whereby said thermoplastic toner issubstantially completely retained in fixed position upon said receptorsurface.

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of a silicone elastomer surfaceattached to a roll.

FIG. 2 is a sectional diagrammatic illustration of nip rolls suitable inthe practice of this invention.

With reference to FIG. 1, roll 10 is shown with journals 11 for mountingand a silicone elastomer blanket 13 disposed upon the cylindricalenlargement 12 which may contain means for providing heat up to 400 F.to the blanket l3.

FIG. 2 shows a pair of nip rolls 20 and 30 in pressing relationshipcreating a nip 31 through which is passing a powdered image bearingsheet 27. To prevent toner offset onto roll 20 its peripheral surface isprovided with a blanket 23 of silicone elastomer.

Rolls 20 and 30 are conventionally cooperatively rotated to draw thesheet 27 therebetween. When this combination is used as a toner fixingor fusing device, either roll 20, roll 30, or both are heated or heatmay be provided by an external device prior to the arrival of the sheet27 into the nip 31. As the sheet 27, bearing a powdered image 28 isdrawn into the heated nip 31, the powdered image 28 is fixed to providea permanent image 29. Roll 20 conventionally is called a fuser roll in afixing device wherein the roll must make direct contact with the tonerimage, and, therefore, must be capable of fixing the toner withoutretaining fused toner which could cause an offset image on the followingsheet.

Roll 30, the backup or pressure roll, may have a silicone blanket 26disposed upon the core 25 in certain situations; however, in operationalsituations where this roll does not contact the toner it is notrequired.

The fixing roll 20 is operated at a surface speed of from 2 to 30 inchesper second and at a temperature sufficient to cause the toner to existin a fused, nontransfer state. Generally, the temperature ranges between220 F. and 400 F. depending upon surface speed and physicalcharacteristics of the toner. The time-temperature relationship of thetoner in the heated nip 31 is controlling in bringing the toner to thedesired state as hereinafter explained and thereafter fixing it upon thereceptor 27 with no retention upon the silicone elastomer surface 23.Toner residence time in the heated nip can be controlled in a variety ofways, e.g., by adjusting roll spaced or nip width, the latter by varyingthe nip pressure or deformability of nip materials. These factors aswell as the temperature are varied to provide the propertime-temperature relationship to achieve the desired state of the fusedtoner for nontransfer of the toner, in whole or in part, during thefixing step.

The fusion of the thermoplastic toner is accomplished according to thisinvention by utilization of forces and properties inherent in thematerial involved in the process, i.e., silicone elastomer,thermoplastic toner, and various receptor surfaces upon which the toneris fixed. When the thermoplastic toner is contacted with the heatedsilicone surface certain conditions must prevail to achieve, the desiredresults of fixing the toner to the receptor surface. The thermoplastictoner must achieve a gross physical state (commonly referred to as arubbery or compliant state) wherein the toner has a cohesive integritygreater than the force of adhesion exerted on it by the siliconeelastomer surface and the force of adhesion between the siliconeelastomer surface and the toner must be less than the force of adhesionbetween the receptor and the fused toner. The term gross as used hereinrefers to the entire mass of thermoplastic toner, as opposed toindividual particles, for example.

The silicone elastomers required in the practice of this invention areformed from the cure or further polymerization of silicone gums.Silicone elastomers have an abhesive quality which can be quantitativelydescribed in terms of release value. Release values are determined on anInstron, Model TM operating at a crosshead speed of 12 inches per minuteand chart speed of 2 inches per minute. One-inch Johnson and Johnson RedCross brand waterproof adhesive tape is used, selecting only a rollhaving a retentionforce of about 450 grams (425-475) as measured'at 80F. on a 24 gauge, No. 4 finish stainless steel te'st panel. indetermining either the retention force of the tape to be used or therelease value of a sample, a inch strip of tape is applied to a 6-inchby 1% inch panel by passing a 4% pound rubber-faced tape roller twiceover the tape, using only the weight of the roller. The sample isimmediately placed in the lnstron and the force in grams necessary tostrip the tape at an angle of 180 is determined. The amount of forcerequired :to strip the tape is referred to as the release value, and thelarger the release value, the more adhesion there has been between theadhesive tape and the surface.

A small release value indicates an effective release coating and a largerelease value indicates an ineffective release coating. Standard testsfor release value are described in TAPPI (Technical Association for thePulp and Paper Industry), Vol. 43, No. 8, pp. 164A (August, 1960) andTAPPl Routine Control Method RC-283 Quality of Release Coatings, issued1960. Many silicone elastomer surfaces have been found to have a releasevalue of only i gm./in., and none greater than 30 gm./in. Such materialshave been found satisfactory in the process of this invention. Materialswhich have a release'value greater than 100 gmJin. will not provide anadequate toner contacting surface because when contacted and fused, partof the tonerwill transfer fr'om the receptor sheet and thus split theimage being fixed; The next sheet to be fused would be exposed to thattoner retainer retained on the elastomer surface and an offset imagewould result.

Depending on the curing mechanism to be used, specific silicone gums areprepared, all having the central, repeating linear unit Trig;

iwhen nTnay be as small as 2 or as large as 20,000 or more, and whereall Rs in the chain may be the same,

but need not be, each individual R being monovalent alkyl or aryl group,halogenated alkyl or aryl group or cyano alkyl group, with not more thana few percent of total R being vinyl, phenyl or halogenated vinyl orphenyl, the major portion of R usually being methyl groups. Wheremilling is employed to incorporate the low surface energy filler intothe silicone elastomer, n is a number such that the gum is of a millablemolecular weight. Dimethyl polysiloxanes containing 1 to 4 mol percentof vinyl substituents on the main chain are preferred. Due tocompatibility with Teflon, another preferred gum is one having methyland perfluoroalkyl R group.

Silicone elastomers, formed by further polymerizing the gums justreferred to, can be characterized generally as the very sparselycross-linked (cured) dimethyl polysiloxane of high molecular weight,e.g., 100,000 1,000,000 average molecular weight. The sparsity ofcross-linking is indicated by R/Si ratios very close to 2, generallyabove 1.95, or even above 1.99, and generally below 2.1 or even below2.01 there usually being 200-500 dimethyl units between cross-linksites. in contrast, the muchmore densely cross-linked silicone resinswhich are considered commercially useful fall in the range of R/Siratios of 1.2 l.5.

Exemplary millable silicone gums useful in the practice of thisinvention are dimethyl polysiloxane sold under the tradename Silastic400, polymerized vinyl dimethyl polysiloxane, sold under the tradenameSilastic 430, polymerized vinyl and phenol polysiloxane,

sold under the tradename Silastic 440, polymerized tri- Other siliconeelastomers can be used in the practice of this invention. Exemplary ofthese are moisture curing silicone gums such as the acetoxy terminatedsilicone gums and room temperature vulcanizable silicones such as thosecured using catalysts including dibutyl tin dilaurate, tin octoate andlead octoate.

H The type 6? fillers which may be compounded with the siliconeelastomers is a significant consideration in the present invention. Fuser copy life or the number of copies fixed before failure of the fuserblanket is a controlling factor in the choice of a material or a fuserblanket. Fusers which are capable of fixing many thousands of copies aredesired in the field of duplication. Fusers which fix over one hundredthousand copies are preferred. Conventional compositions of silicone3135-. tomers formulated with high surface energy fillers such assilica, titanium oxide, and' iron oxide have a very short copy life. Forexample, in a silicone elastomer fuser blanket having 20 weight percentsilica (a high surface energy filler) only 1,000 copies are fixed beforeobjectionable offset occurs and the blanket becomes useless. Siliconeelastomers having substantially no reinforcing fillers (at least lessthan 1 percent by weight of the silicone elastomer) used underthe sameconditions will fix as many as 35,000 copies before failure occurs frommechanical breakdown of the elastomer. It has been discovered that theaddition of low surface energy reinforcing fillers which resist thermaldegradation at the fixing temperatures (e.g., 220 400 F.) drasticallyimprove the copy life of silicone elastomer fusing blankets. Siliconeelastomer fusing blankets having low surface energy fillers blendedtherein, such as Teflon, under similar operating conditions have beenused to fix in excess of 100,000 copies with no offset or mechanicalbreakdown. A surprisingly long copy life is thereby obtained through theaddition of low surface energy fillers.

In general, low surface energy materials are the organic polymers, whichhave surface energies of about 50 dynes/cm. or less. The preferredorganic polymers are the fluorinated resins having surface energiesbelow 30 dynes/cm. Polytetrafluoroethylene, available under thetradename Teflon, is considered to have a surface energy of about 18-20dynes/cm. The conventional fillers are inorganic materials such assilica iron oxide, titanium dioxide, etc., which have surface energiesabove 50 dynes/cm., and generally above70 dynes/cm. Surface energies ofvarious materials are reported by F. M. Fowkes, Surfaces and InterfacesI Chemical and Physical Characteristics, p. l97223 (1967). In additionto surface energy requirements, the filler must be able to withstand'thefixing temperatures for prolonged periods, generally 220 F. to 400 F.for at least 50 hours and, preferably 100 hours or more. Fluorinatedresins, particularly polytetrafluoroethylene, uniquely meet theserequirements due to their release abilities, temperature resistance, andreinforcing properties when milled into silicone elastomers.

Silicone elastomer filled with high surface energy fillers initiallyprovides a good fusing blanket. However, as the elastomer contacts thetoner and the receptor sheet upon which it is borne, abrasion occursexposing high surface energy sites within the blanket. Thereafter, fusedtoner has a tendency to adhere and accumulate at the exposed highsurface energy sites resulting in an offset image problem. This can betemporarily remedied by cleaning the toner accumulation from theelastomer surface but cannot be completely eliminated. The exposure ofhigh surface energy sites in silicone elastomers filled with highsurface energy fillers is totally unexpected in the silicone elastomerformulation art. It has been thought that high surface energy fillerswould be completely wet by the silicone elastomer and therefore notpresent this problem.

Silicone elastomers substantially free of high surface energy fillersprovide fuser blankets without the above described offset problem.Silicone elastomers free of fillers provide a fusing blanket capable ofuse in a conventional copy machine. However, this blanket lacks thephysical strength required for prolonged trouble free use which is aprime requisite of a fuser blanket in copying devices. The preferredblanket is provided by blending low surface energy fillers such asfluorocarbon resins, preferably Teflon, into silicone elastomers whichare substantially free (less than 1 percent by weight) of high surfaceenergy fillers. Silicone elastomers having low surface energy fillersblended therein provide fusing blankets capable of prolonged use withoutthe attendant problem of exposure of high surface sites that are seen insilicone elastomers strengthened with high surface energy fillers.

Silicone elastomer roll surfaces can be fabricated by a number oftechniques. The desired roll covering should be smooth and of controlledthickness. The preferred elastomer containing low surface energy fillersrequires milling to blend the fillers therein and therefore requiresmillable silicone gums. Milled compositions are easily shaped intoblankets by pressing in a suitable die.

A suitable method for making the silicone elastomer fusing blanketinvolves slowly adding a low surface energy filler to a high viscositysilicone gum in a high shear mixing device to achieve intimate blendingof the components. The high shear mixing of the components in the caseof Telfon appears to cause the elongation of particles of Teflon intothreads or filaments thereby providing a fiber structure within thesilicone elastomer. In order to achieve the critical reinforcing effectof the fluorocarbon resins, e.g., Teflon, the resins must be thoroughlyintermixed such as by milling into a millable silicone elastomer. Thereinforcing properties are not obtained, for example, by simply mixingthe fluorocarbon resin with a silicone gum without milling and thencuring the mixture.

In the preparation, conventional silicone gum curing agents are added tothe mixture after high shear mixing of' the low surface energy fillerand the silicone gum. Exemplary curing agents are benzoyl peroxide, 2,4-dichlorobenzoyl peroxide, tertiary-butyl perbenzoate, dicumyl peroxideand other commercially recognized silicone polymer curing agents. Curingconditions required by these agents vary somewhat depending upon thecuring agent and the silicone gum. Generally, heat is required to curethe silicone gums and conventionally temperatures up to 340 F. are used.Post-curing of the silicone elastomer composition may be required if itis to be used at high temperatures. Post-curing is accomplished byheating the elastomer in aforced air oven from 2 to 4 hours or more attemperatures up to 450 F.

The low surface energy fillers preferably are fluorinated or partiallyfluorinated organic resins. Exemplary of these arepolytetrafluoroethylene sold under the tradename Teflon, the copolymerof vinylidene fluoride and hexafluoropropene sold under the tradenameFluorel, and the terpolymer of vinylidene fluoride, hexafluoropropeneand tetrafluoroethylene, sold under the tradename Viton B.

The amount of low surface energy filler employed may vary over a widerange, generally from about 0.1 to about 20.0 weight percent of thetotal, preferably from about 0.5 to 5.0 weight percent, and mostpreferably about 2.0 weight percent. 7

Generally, as the content of the low surface energy filler is increased,the hardness of the composition increases. It is desirable that there beintimate contact between the silicone elastomer fixing surface and thesubstrate bearing toner powder. Thus, fixing surfaces having a Shore Adurometer hardness of less than are desirable. Hardnesses greater than80 Shore A durometer of the composition of a fuser-blanket generallyrequire very high nip pressures to get satisfactory fixing results;therefore, the content of low surface energy filler in the preferredcomposition is limited by this factor.

A fusing blanket is prepared by placing the silicone elastomer which hasthe low surface energy filler and a curing agent blended therein on apolished die which may be coated with a release assisting substance. Thedie is fitted with shims to provide a blanket of a certain thickness.The loaded die is pressed in a platen press heated sufficiently to causethe cure of the elastomer. The resultant sheet is adhesively ormechanically attached to a fuser roll core to provide a completed fuserroll. Likewise, the composition can be pressed in a sim ilar die whichhas a sheet such as a stainless steel sheet covering the bottom of thedie. The sheet preferably is coated with an adhesive. The resultantcomposition bonded to the steel sheet can be mechanically or adhesivelybonded to the roll core.

To attain fixing without offsetting in whole or in part of thermoplastictoner from the receptor surface to the silicone elastomer requires thatthe cohesive integrity of the toner powder be greater than the force ofadhesion exerted thereon by the silicone elastomer and further that thereceptor have a greater force of adhesion for the toner in the statesuitable for fixing than the silicone elastomer. Exemplary receptorsurfaces are paper, clay, ceramic, glass, plastic, and metals, e.g.,aluminum or stainless steel etc. In general, to accomplish fixingwithout offsetting requires that the thermoplastic toner be in arubbery, compliant state which may be defined in terms of viscoelasticproperties as the state wherein the fused thermoplastic toner has acreep modulus (defined as G llJ where J is creep compliance) in therange of between about dynes/cm. and about 10 dynes/cm. Under processoperating conditions, the creep modulus of fused thermoplastic toner isdependent on two parameters the temperature of the fused thermoplastictoner and the time in which two surfaces are in contact with each otherwith the fused thermoplastic toner between the contacting surfaces.

For a given temperature, the range of contact time over which the fusedtoner exhibits a modulus within the 10" to 10 dynes/cm. range (generallyin what is known as the rubbery region) depends on the material and onits molecular weight. For high molecular weight amorphous polymerers therubbery region is called the entanglement plateau and it may extend overseveral decades of reduced time. Some semi-crystalline materials, lowmolecular weight polymers, and other organic compounds may not exhibit aplateau and thus may be in the rubbery region for a relatively shortperiod of reduced time. Similarly, for a given contact time, such fusedtoner exhibits rubbery response charac-teristics I (generally a modulusof 10" to 10 dynes/cm?) over a a dry particulate state but yet achieve arubbery or compliant state with a creep modulus from 10 to 10 dynes percm. when heated. Exemplary thermoplastics useful in compounding tonerpowders are epoxy resins such as that sold under the tradename Eponi004, polystyrene resins sold under the tradename Piccolastic D 125 andD 150. An exemplary toner powder is the following wherein allpercentages are by weight and the average particle size is 7 microns:

44% Epon 1004 52% Magnetite 4% Carbon black.

The powder is made by spray dryingthis formulation from a solvent suchas chloroform. Another suitable toner powder for the above describedprocess consists of 65 percent polystyrene and 35 percent carbon black.

Thermoplastic toner can be prepared by several techniques; for example,by spray drying an organic solution or emulsion of the developermaterial or by an extrusion-grinding process. Particles can beclassified into the desired size range. The particle size range of thetransfer medium generally ranges from 0.5 to 50 microns, preferablybetween about 2 and about 15 microns for most applications. However,specific applications may demand lower or higher size ranges. Generally,spherical particles are preferred. The powders preferably have aflowability angle of repose ranging from to 125. Flowability is measuredby feeding a thin stream of powder to the upper flat surface of acircular pedestal from a vibrating funnel, thereby creating a conicaldeposit of powder on the pedestal. The angle of response is defined bythe angle between the side of the cone and the pedestal at 25 C.

To better illustrate the invention, the following nonlimiting examplesare provided wherein all parts and percentages are by weight unlessotherwise stated.

EYAMPILE T A roll was prepared by handing 980 grams of filler freesilicone gum sold under the tradename Silastic 430 on a rubber millhaving a l 3 inch roll. Twenty grams of powdered polytetrafluoroethylenesold under the tradename Teflon powder grade 6 (surface energy 19-20dynes/cm.) was slowly added to the banded silicone gum. The milling wascontinued in this matter for about l5 minutes to blend the components.Thereafter the mixture was transferred to a Banbury high shear mixer andtherein worked for 15 minutes at a temperature of 250-290 F. Thismixture was then allowed to cool and returned to the rubber mill.Fifteen grams of benzoyl peroxide in an equal weight of silicone gumpaste was blended into the mixture on the rubber mill. After 15 minutesof blending, the mixture was placed on a 5 mil by 10 inch by 18 inchstainless steel sheet which had previously been primed with Dow Corningsilicone rubber primer 2260 to promote adhesionof the silicone elastomerto the sheet. The sheet was shimmed to give a final blanket thickness of0.020 inch and pressed in a platen press at a pressure of tons for 10minutes at 260 F. The blanket was then post cured for 4 hours at 400 F,in a forced air oven and after cooling, adhesively bonded to the 6 inchdiameter by 12 inch long fuser roll of an experimental copy machine. Theroll had an internal heating element which maintained the blanketsurface temperature at 325 F.

Powdered images were deposited on bond paper according to theelectrographic process described in French Pat. No. 1,456,993 with atoner consisting of 60 percent magnetite and40 percent epoxy resin(tradename Epon 1004) which had been spheroidized with carbon on theoutside. Thereafter, each sheet was passed in turn through the nipcreated by the above described fuser roll which was in contact with apressure roll at a nip load pressure of 25 to 50 psi which created a nipwidth of one-half inch with the pressure roll. The fuser roll wasrotated counterclockwise at, a surface speed of 16 inches per second andthusly was used to successfully fix in excess of 100,000 powdered imagecopies.

EXAMPLES 2 4 Fusing blankets were prepared and evaluated according tothe methods described in Example 1 using silicone elastomer Silastic 430with variations only in the content of fillers. Both high surface energyand low surface energy filler containing compositions were prepared andthe results of their evaluation are tabulated below with those ofExample 1.

What is claimed is: 1. A roll useful as a direct contact fuser forfixing powdered thermoplastic toner images to a sheet upon which saidimages have been deposited, comprising a cylindrical form and a siliconeelastomer offset preventing covering contiguously disposed upon theperipheral surface of said cylindrical form, said silicone elastomerhaving a release value less than 30 dynes/cm and being substantiallyfree of high surface energy filleE hai/ifig surface energiesaboveabtSiKm'dyns/cm and containing heat resistant fluorinated resinreinforcing filler having a surface energy less than about 50 dynes/cmin an amount sufficient to reinforce said silicone elastomer for use asa direct contact fuser blanket.

2. The roll as recited in claim 1 wherein said silicone elastomercontains 0,1 to 20 weight percent of said fluorinated resin.

3. The roll as recited in claim 1 wherein said fluorinated resin ispolytetrafluoroethylene.

2. The roll as recited in claim 1 wherein said silicone elastomercontains 0.1 to 20 weight percent of said fluorinated resin.
 3. The rollas recited in claim 1 wherein said fluorinated resin ispolytetrafluoroethylene.